The score for The Raid is steadily moving along. In between Linkin Park studio sessions–which are also underway–I’m working on the feature-length score for this brutal Indonesian action movie. With a good chunk of the movie now sounding good, and a lot of great hype and reviews coming from folks who have gotten a chance to see the film, I’m excited to tell you a little more about it.

Writing big, nasty parts for a fast-paced action scene have come pretty naturally for me. There are lots of moments with big beats and unique, exciting sounds. But one thing I’ve found that’s different in writing for film (versus an album) is being aware of how and when to make the music transparent. The music needs to be invisible at times. Writing a Linkin Park song is usually about our personal stories, not someone else’s. And an LP song is designed to draw you in, to catch your ear with words, melodies, and sounds. Often, the techniques I might use to create a catchy sound or “hook” would actually take away from a scene in The Raid, so it’s been a fun challenge to learn when and how to let the movie’s story come first.

I also enlisted the help of Joe Trapanese, best know for his work with Daft Punk on the TRON score and soundtrack. Joe also did strings on the newest M83 album, “Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming.” Joe comes from a composing / arranging / film background, and we’re finding great ways to inform and compliment one anothers’ work in the music for this movie.

Here’s a cool (fan-made?) video for Joe’s favorite track he worked on, from M83′s new album, a song called “Wait”